Fermentation: The Daily Wine Blog

LOTS of Merlot

Here's the skinny on what I've been hearing about the upcoming harvest on the North Coast:

LOTS OF PINOT HANGING IN THE VINEYARDS
LOTS OF MERLOT HANGING IN THE VINEYARDS

LOTS = Wow...that's a lot of grapes you've got there.

One story that's being passed around in Sonoma is that an Alexander Valley Grower with lots of Merlot planted dropped his price for the crop to $350 a ton. That's nothing....And no one is buying it. And we aren't talking about poor grapes either.

As a friend said to me recently, "you're going to be seeing lots of merlot in your 2006 Zinfandel, in you 2006 Cabernet, in your 2006 White Zinfandel, in your Syrah and in just about any other red wine."

Last year's harvest was said to be very very big. But it wasn't big for all the varietals. We don't know yet what this year's total tonnage of grapes will be since the harvest has just started. But....there will be LOTS of merlot.

Girly Man Nixes Wine History

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed the bill that would have recognized Zinfandel as "The Historic Wine of California".

What a GirlyMan!!

Well, maybe that's not fair. Let's at least see what he had to say in his veto message:

"To name only one of the many of the varietals produced in California as the
historic wine fails to recognize the many world class varietals produced in the State.
With California’s unique micro climates, diverse geography, outstanding soils, and
industrious growers, farmworkers and vintners who have mastered the delicate art of
winemaking perfectly balancing art with science, it would be a shame to recognize only
one as “California’s Historic Wine.”

Typical of politicians, he doesn't address the issue. Of course naming Zin the Historic Wine of California "fails to recognize the many world class varietals produced in the state." That's sort of the point of singling out one wine. Let's face it, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc hardly rise to the historic levels that Zinfandel does.

It was Zinfandel that saved California from the "Mission" grape that produced mediocre wine throughout the latter part of the 19th century in California. Then Zin came around and winemakers realized that truly great wine could be made in the state. Upon seeing the results of the wines made from Zinfandel growers began planting it at a breakneck speed.

Today Zinfandel is universally recognized as "America's grape".

So, I fear I can't retract my charge: Girly Man!!

The problem for the Governor, I presume, was that he saw no political benefit to signing the legislation. He likely figured he gained nothing politically while likely losing a tad of respect from a few winemakers and a wine association or two. It appears, by the way, that the powerful California Wine Institute favored the legislation while Family Winemakers of California opposed the legislation.

Those opposing the legislation accurately portrayed the legislation as being unfair. Of course by definition, singling out one thing is unfair. But recognizing greatness and significance is not about fair. It's about recognizing singularity and greatness.

Others thought that by singling out Zinfandel it might give Zin producers an unfair sales boost at the hands of the state. Perhaps it would have offered  minor and temporary boost. And I'm going to spend the rest of the morning trying to figure out how that's bad.

The Governor made a poor decision. Honesty and history suffered.

Zinfandel Advocates & Producers (ZAP) statement on the Veto and news can be found here.

 

Burning Man Vs. Wine Auctions

My beautiful wife Ginny is set to leave me home with the kids (a dubious decision) tomorrow as she heads off for Burning Man for the 7th or 8th time. I've never been to Burning Man mainly because I'm not a big fan of the desert and dust. However, one year I considered going and creating the Desert Wine Cafe for the oenophile folk at the event. But my wife, a veteran, informed me it's not really a wine-kinda-thing.

I took her word on it, stayed home and watched the kids.

But I'm just not sure I'm willing to give up on the Burning Man contingent. 30,000 people will head out to the self expression festival this week. Some of them surely will be missing their wine...despite the other....distractions. I know Ginny will be.

So I started to look through our stash here to see just what would be appropriate for 100 degree heat and dust. What wine matches that milieu?

I'll send her off with some palate cleansing Gewurztraminer... and in a pinch can be used to wipe yourself down...as long as it's dry.

The closest thing we have to Burning Man in the wine industry is the Sonoma Valley Harvest Auction Weekend. This is a great, fun, casual event in Sonoma Valley where the vintners just take off and and enjoy themselves. However, don't count on the vintners washing themselves in Gewurztraminer.....I don't think.

Expectations of Openness

Another winery client at Wark Communications is about to take up blogging. This occasion has given me the opportunity to think about what's important in this pursuit.

One of those things is honesty and openness. I believe readers respond best to those who disclose as much as is prudent to their readers.

Oddly, this point was driven home yesterday when I was looking over a new website, not a blog, that I think might have potential. But, as I cruised around Winemarketer.com I realized eventually that the sources of this new website dedicated to on-line wine marketing had no reference whatsoever to the folk who created it. No email address (just forms), no "About Us" page, no info on the credentials of the founders and creators, nothing.

I went back to the press release that led me to the new website and realized that not even there was any information available about the creators of the site beyond this cryptic reference,"Wine Marketer was developed by a group of professional wine marketers, a wine retailer and SEO experts from multiple successful marketing firms." The contact name on the press release is "M. Phillip" and a cell phone number is offered.

The fact that there is no information about the who the "professional wine marketers" are behind this new website is not the point. The point is that this lack of information made me wary. It made me wonder.

I get the same way about wine blogs in which the owners choose to remain anonymous. Real people are always more interesting than unknown people, if only because real people have real stories. I tend to walk away from blogs that don't disclose their ownership. This might be a fatal flaw on my part...but I don't think so. It goes back to the issue of openness and honesty in blogging. If you expect your readers to stick with you, they should at least have the expectation that the object of their attention won't pull punches and will tell you what needs to be known to put their words in context.

The Story of Memorable Wines

You just never know what's going to impress.

Saturday we had a nice little dinner party here. No reason for it other than just to get together good friends. Of course, wine was involved. No one broke out any big guns that night. But, we did sample some very interesting wines that demonstrated something that is all too often the case:

An evening's wines that are the most memorable often have an interesting story to tell.

Wine #1: Pinot Noir, 2000, New Zealand (Producer Unknown)
Yes, producer unknown...or at least forgotten. The label was in tatters, though I recall that in the candlelight someone still was able to make a guess at it. However, the name escapes me. Nevertheless, what I do remember about this wine was that it cost $1.99. And it was marvelous. Marvelous not because it was drinkable or even acceptable. But, marvelous because its aromas, flavor and texture was all so harmonious. But that's not the story, is it. The $1.99 is the story. It came from a bargain bin at a local fine wine shop here in Sonoma. How it got to be listed at $1.99 I do not know, other than, of course, it was not selling at whatever its original price. I love finding wines that go so far beyond "bargain" they have no other descriptor for them

Wine #2: 1966 Rocha's Port
K&L Wine Merchants tells the story like this. "The most famous Port you've never heard of. Ridge Vineyards was looking for barrels (very scarce back then). The only way to get them was to import them - full of Port! The wine has held up extremely well, and is a true collector item."

Yes, THAT Ridge Vineyards. All of us thought this wine delightful. Yet, we all agreed it had seen better days and might have been better in 1996 rather than 2006. Yet, at the end of the night the bottle was emptied between 9 of us.

I think it it must be true that the most memorable wines we'll ever taste are those that have a good story to go with them; a story that sparks our intellect and our memory.

Wine Numbers

I just finished reading in California Grapevine an address that Dan Berger gave the Wine Press Club of New South Wales. You can also find it online HERE. (ATTN: PDF)

In it, he offers selected advice for the wineries and winemakers of Australia. One piece of advice was particularly interesting:  "Empower the consumer with factual data".

Specifically, Dan is talking about putting things like the Total Acidity and pH information on the label.

This is all pretty arcane chemical information. It's unlikely that very many people would have any idea what it means or what the difference is between a wine with a pH level of 3.55 and 3.8.  Dan understands this. He writes, "How many consumers can  interpret these numbers. This is not the point. Those who can interpret these numbers are the consumers you want to win over and hold on to."

I think he's absolutely right.

Even more than alcohol or the name of the appellation on the label, the pH level can deliver loads of information about the wine in the bottle, mostly about its structure and ability to age way. It's one thing to right on the back label, "this wine should age well for blah blah blah". It's another to write, "THIS is why this wine is more likely to age well" then offer up the number.

The Wine Marketing Strategists

There are more states today than a year ago and two years ago that allow wineries to ship wine direct to consumers. Some provide easy access to consumers without too much effort, while others have installed real barriers to their market.

While barriers put in place to essentially protect wholesalers don't serve either the consumer or the winery, but in the end it's the winery that has do decide if they want to jump through the hoops.

Paul Mabray over at the Inertia Beverage REthink Blog makes the case for wineries putting their efforts toward those states that allows direct sales to their customers with the least hoops. And of course he's right.

Among the important points Paul makes is:

"I think sales are the key to a winery's success - not sales restrictions. There are enough states that wineries are not servicing properly through good direct sales techniques to increase each of their business over 300%. Why break your neck trying to battle for that one customer in a state that restricts free trade? This is a customer centric world - you want to give customer service - unfair constraints don't allow you to do that. Work with consumers in states that do this to have them lobby to allow them their rights - their right to purchase wine."

After this initial point Paul really goes on a roll, making one of the best arguments I've seen for wineries doing the best job they can focusing on consumers in wine-friendly states, rather than spending time focusing efforts on states where  they just aren't welcome.

Over the next couple years the American wine industry is either going to take advantage of a new and growing interest in wine or they will be leaving a lot of money and good will on the table. The question is how to best take advantage of this seminal time in the American wine industry.

To understand exactly how to start to take advantage, wineries would be smart to take a look at the good and free advice being offered at the REthink Wine Blog.

Behold...French Wine Discovered in America

How far behind the curve are French wine producers in terms of tapping into the larger American wine market?

There are some pretty basic principles of this national market that need to be understood if you want to sell any significant amount of wine:

1. Price it under $15
2. Put the name of the grape (variety) on the label
3. Make the label attractive and easy to read

Pretty basic stuff. Yet, here comes an announcement from a French producer that exclaims in near revelatory terms the introduction of a French wine into the American market finally responds to what Americans want in a wine:

"Major Bordeaux Wine Producer Responds to New World Challenge: Union De Producteurs De Saint-Emilion Launches EMILIO -- A New World Style Wine from the Old World.

The announcement describes EMILIO as:

"a blend tailored to please the American palate and targeting the growing number of American wine consumers.

"EMILIO 2005 is a 90% Merlot that combines a touch of the New World with French taste and elegance. Thirty percent of the wine is aged in oak prior to the blend for a more refined wine that doesn't break the bank! The wine originates from the world acclaimed soils of Saint-Emilion in Bordeaux. The bright cherry red label and smiling face of the label beckon even the hardest to please wine consumer. EMILIO is intended to attract a younger audience as well as a more discriminating wine connoisseur -- a wine to enjoy with friends!"

Are the French so far behind the curve that the release of wine that we assume is somewhat fleshier and easy to drink and that has an attractive label is cause for an announcement that borders on, "Behold, we have invented Air"?

A BIG wine for the Good Wine Guys

In a number of states wine wholesalers have attacked direct shipment of wine to consumers by advocating that all direct sales should occur only after a person actually visits the winery in person.

On it's face this requirement, adopted most notably in Kentucky and Indiana, appears not to discriminate against any wineries. After all, whether th winery resides in state or out of state, the purchaser must go there first.

Of course this is balderdash. A person living in Kentucky who wants to have wine shipped directly to them find it much easier to head to a Kentucky winery than to a CA winery, as the law states must occur first.

Well, this kind of onerous provision, the kind wine wholesalers like so much, was challenged in the Sixth District Court. Kentucky's law that demands in-person purchasing before shipment can occur was one of the targets of the lawsuit.

Guess what? The judge in the case said that such laws are unconstitutional because they discriminate against out of state wineries.

The judge wrote in his opinion: "It is clear that the in-person requirement amounts to “differential treatment of in-state and out-of-state economic interests that benefits the former and burdens the latter.”

This is pretty significant stuff, assuming the ruling survives challenge. The wholesalers' brilliant idea that they could stop CA, WA and OR wineries in particular from shipping directly to KY residents with the seemingly fair rule that customers must first visit the winery, whether it resides in KY or outside of KY, was found to be not so brilliant.

In essence, the ruling takes off the table one more tool the monopolistic wholesalers thought they had in their arsenal for keeping the market all to themselves.

You can read the ruling HERE at the WineAmerica web site under the heading "Kentucky Court Order Favors Wineries' Right to Ship". It's not so complicated as many judicial opinions can be. The opinion by Justice Charles Simpson is straightforward and compelling

The Nexus of Wine & Perfume

My confession is this: I'm a perfume whore.   A Cologne Nut. More than anything it is the idea that man can combine so many aromas and scents into a singular potion that has the power to simply arrest arrest our mind has always captured me.

I used to keep a bowl of coffee beans in my bathroom and had at my disposal too many bottles to keep on the bathroom counter. Many of them were hid away for lack of room. And, past girlfriends tended to get the stuff as gifts for no good reason other than I couldn't help myself as I walked past the perfume counter at Macy's.

Then there is the artistry of the vessel that holds these scents. It's quite a production, creating not just the scent of the perfume or cologne but wrapping it up in a container that might help tell the tale of the essence of the aroma.

It is no different than wine, is it: a perishable product that serves merely to please us and that we consume.

The New York Times announced today that they have appointed their first ever Perfume critic, Chandler Burr, also the author of "The Emperor & Scent" The True Story of Perfume and Obsession".

Burr says:

""The creation of fragrance is one of the highest art forms crafted for the senses, the equal of painting for sight and music for hearing, and this column is about treating perfume as the art that it is. Every other true art has a serious criticism. I believe perfume should as well, for the benefit, and I hope enjoyment, of the Times reader and the industry expert both. Perfume is an aesthetically rich and complex product, one both deeply anchored in history and more commercially important than ever. My opinion is, of course, just my opinion; given The Times's weight, I take this responsibility quite seriously. I intend to treat this position with the greatest respect, and I'm delighted to serve as The Times's perfume critic."

Burr, and the Times in particular, will take a great deal of flack for this move. It will seem to many as silly, inconsequential and indulgent, all those things that make life enjoyable. And, all those things that make the connoisseurship of wine seem the same to many. Furthermore, the idea of critiquing a perfume will seem to many to be the height of arrogance, just as it does to many who contemplate the wine critic.

Yet it is true that without a healthy dose of arrogance residing in the mind of man, we would be without art, great cuisine, buildings beyond boxes, and wines that matter. And, we would be without much perfume. All artists accept the arrogance of the reviewer too and accept that the review and critique of human endeavors, particularly the ones that reach beyond the mundane, are an essential element in the creative process.

Good for the New York Times.

The Top Ten "Top Ten" In Wine

Decanter Magazine, that British icon of wine publishing, recently announced its list of Top Ten White Winemakers in the World. The fact that no American winemakers made the list prodded Charles Olken of the Connoisseurs Guide to California Wine, one of our best wine newsletters, to craft his own list: Top Ten White Wine Makers West of the Rockies. The List is very intriguing. Number three on the list, for example, is an inspired choice.

Anyone who doesn't like crafting Top Ten lists just isn't trying hard enough. Ranking things forces you to consider your priorities and to question well established assumptions. And, it gives the bold among us an intriguing way to show their cards.

So as not to be left out of the game, Here is my...

Top Ten List of "Top Ten Lists" About Wine
I'd Like To See Top Ten List Makers Tackle:

10. Top Ten Wine Wine Regions That Make the Best Vacation Spots

9. Top Ten Indispensable Wine Accessories

8. Top Ten Ways To Make a Living Drinking Wine

7. Top Ten American Winemaking Regions Outside the West Coast

6. Top Ten On-Line Wine Shops

5. Top Ten American Pinot Noir Producers Making Wine For 15 Years or Longer

4. Top Ten American Appellation Based on Quality

3. Top Ten Wine Blogs That Don't Advocate Top Ten Lists

2. Top Ten Wine Regions That Need To Be Replaced with Track homes and Walmarts

1. Top Ten "Vintages Of The Century" in Bordeaux Since 1994

Stupidity Or Deception: Minors and Wine On-line

"YOU CAN'T"

This was the response to the question, "Could one say, as the liquor trade group did, that millions of teenagers had bought alcohol on-line?

Now here's the kicker. Guess who offered this response. Michael Wood, a vice president at Teenage Research who worked on the survey commission by the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers Association (WSWA) that used the survey results to claim, "Millions of Kids Buy Internet Alcohol, Landmark Survey Reveals."

How often will the Wine & Spirit Wholesalers Association try to block bullets with babies?    It's a pretty immoral way of going about one's business: using children and parents' concern for their child's well being to line their pockets. Yet no matter how many times the WSWA tries to play the "minor card" and no matter how many times they get called on the carpet for their deceptive and dirty tactics they still think there is more to gain by going to the well again.

This time it was the Wall Street Journal reporter Carl Bailick who did the numbers and talked to the right folk in uncovering the WSWA's unethical twisting of the survey numbers. Bailick wrote in an August 18 column:

"To arrive at that jarring headline, the group used some questionable logic to pump up results from a survey that was already tilted in favor of finding a large number of online buyers."

He then goes on to debunk the part of the survey that led the WSWA to construct the headline on their press release that read: "Millions of Kids Buy Internet Alcohol, Landmark Survey Reveals."

Bailck explains:

"To justify that headline, the wholesalers' group focused on another part of the survey that asked respondents if they knew a teen who had purchased alcohol online. Some 12% said they did. Of course, it's ridiculous to extrapolate from a stat like that -- one buyer could be known by many people, and it's impossible to measure overlap. Consider a high school of 1,000 students, with 20 who have bought booze online and 100 who know about the purchases. If 100 of the school's students are surveyed at random, you'd expect to find two who have bought and 10 who know someone who has -- but that still represents only two buyers, not 10. (Not to mention the fact that thinking you know someone who has ordered beer online is quite different from ordering a six pack yourself.)"

Karen Gravois Elliot, a WSWA PR Flack, pointed Bailick to those who oversaw the creation of the survey rather than respond to questions of its legitimacy. That's when Bailick got the response that the results don't justify the headline.

So this begs the question, are the folk over at the WSWA just too stupid to understand the results of the survey they commissioned or did they purposefully put out a deceptive press release?

I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt and say it's just stupidity. But that might be a hard one to sell since they now know that even their own research firm confirmed their claims are false, yet there has been no retraction by the WSWA of the claims in their press release.

So let's just shoot to the bottom line. The WSWA has proven over and over their hypocrisy when it comes to dealing with the issue of direct shipment of wine. They've claimed that direct shipment is a bad thing while their president Juanita Duggan sat on the advisory board of a company that was in the business of selling direct. The difference was in that case wholesalers would get a cut of wine sold through the company. WSWA has claimed that wineries don't care if they sell to minors or not, a claim so bogus as to defy understanding. And they've gone so far as to say that wine wholesalers across the country are more than willing to represent wineries that can't ship into states where wholesaler money has bought off politicians and resulted in closing all direct shipping channels. Yet, it remains extraordinarily difficult to get a wholesaler to take on MOST brands offered to them.

Juanita Duggan, who has reigned over at WSWA as it leader for the past few years is gone. She "resigned" after what had to be the the most disastrous eight years  in the history of the WSWA. In that time more states have opened their doors to direct shipping, the Supreme Court of the United States shot down their arguments on direct shipping, a federal judge in Washington State opened the doors to wineries from out of state selling direct to in-state restaurants and retailers, and the WSWA has developed a reputation in the industry and among the media for being snake oil peddlers when it comes to the issue of direct shipping.

This "survey" was Juanita Duggan's last hurrah before "resigning" her post at WSWA. It was nice to see the Wall Street Journal give her an appropriate send off.

Sympathizing With Mondavi

It's hard not to sympathize with Michael Mondavi.

Imagine having helped build one of the truly great wineries and brands in the world. That's a pretty cool accomplishment to have on your resume. Now, imagine the brand also carries your last name. Even cooler. But imagine further being that person, making wine, but not being able to use your own name on your new brand.

This is apparently the situation that Michael Mondavi, son of Robert, finds himself in.

Michael, who recently purchased Carneros Creek Winery in Carneros apparently has plans for his own brand. This new turn in his career comes two years after leaving Constellation Brands, the wine behemoth that purchased Mondavi. The problem is that Constellation owns the the use of the name "Mondavi", while Michael's uncle owns the use of the name "CK MONDAVI" (that's a long story)

Others in the wine industry have found themselves in a similar situation. While annoying it must be to have your name owned by others, there's no reason that one can't move on to do fine things in the wine business. Cecil De Loach and family, formerly of De Loach Vineyards, are doing just fine in their new venture that makes no reference to the famed wine family's last name.

If I was to bet on it, I'd put my money on Michael Mondavi doing just fine with his new winery. Maybe he should call the new winery:

FORMERLY
KNOWN AS
ESTATES

Russell Crowe Saves Wine?

Virginie Boone over at WineAbout (the newest journalilst-written wine blog) has a really interesting post on an upcoming wine movie that features Russell Crow and set to debut in November.

About the upcoming film, entitled "A Good Year", Boone writes:

"The success of "Sideways" must have finally gotten the Hollywood types thinking... maybe the inherent romance of wine can fill seats on the big screen. The time to strike is certainly now."

She's right, isn't she.

It strikes me further that a film offering a glimpse into  the bucolic  side of wine, the way vineyard settings can capture the mind and heart of those who spend time in them, and an alternative to snakes, terrorism, psychosis and guns that seem to be a staple in the media will in fact do quite well (Russell Crowe doesn't hurt either).

The question is will it have a similar affect on the consumption of and interest in wine the way the film "Sideways" did. Sideways would never have had the impact it did had it not been in contention for an Oscar. So, if director Ridley Scott can pull of a great film, if the focus on the wine and vineyards is substantial and if the movie is in Oscar contention who knows what might happen.

Read Virginie Boone's Post at WineAbout

The American Wine Celebrity

Of late I've been working with another wine PR specialist to help a client bring to market a really interestng wine info product. In the course of brainstorming with them yesterday we came to a very interesting conclusion about wine that at first set me back:

There is no recognized American Wine Celebrity.

No Bob Villa of Wine. No Martha Stewart of Wine. No Emeril Lagasse of Wine.

Could there be an American Wine Celebrity that is both authoritative, entertaining and likable; someone who, despite wine's unfortunate elitist reputation, could use the power of their personality and the power of the media to make wine engaging?

The main obstacle to the emergence of an American Wine Celebrity is that not nearly enough people drink wine or make wine a part of their lives such as they do home improvement, homemaking, or cooking. And again, you've got the reputation of wine and wine lovers to overcome.

The closest thing we have to this type of person is Andrea Immer-Robinson. The woman is engaging and smart and knowledgeable. But, she's sequestered over there on the Fine Living Channel, a very small outpost from which to develop the kind of following necessary to break out of minor celebrity status.

So what would an American Wine Celebrity look like?

-I think they would have to be incredibly knowledgeable about wine, but not shove that knowledge on people except when called to. This kind of knowledge would be expected, but it is also off-putting all on its own.

-I think they would need to be engaging in an Emeril Lagasse kind of way. You know, the guy you want to have over at your backyard summer party because they are just plain fun

-I think they need to be excitable when it comes to wine, but not psycho excitable.

Of course the new American Wine Authority needs a media outlet and friends in high places, but this is secondary to their personality and approach to wine. If they are a compelling personality, no matter where they start they will be successful and greater things will follow (if of course they are "handled" appropriately). Perhaps their own show on a minor channel turns into guest appearances on Good Morning America, which turns into a guest appearance on The Apprentice, which leads to a book, which leads to more talk shows, which leads to a bigger show of their own on a more prominent channel, which leads to inclusion in the gossip rags and websites, which leads to their own wine, etc. etc.

I'm not suggesting that America needs a "Wine Celebrity" that can put a fresh, entertaining, attractive face on the juice. Rather, I think it's interesting to note that the position is open.

What Does Stolen Wine Taste Like?

"The collection consisted of more than 600 bottles from every vintage of the 18th century from the six Grand Cru castles of the French Bordeaux region. The collection has been registered by Guinness Book of Records for years as a unique wine collection."

This is the description of a wine cellar in Sweden that was cleaned out completely by thieves two nights ago.

"Every vintage of the 18th century" from the six grand cru Bordeaux Estates."

Could this haul every be fenced? Could this possibly be a robbery meant to result in the conversion of the goods into cash? Every legitimate auction house in the world will be on the look out for the 18th century wines. It's unlikely that a single one will ever be sold via that route. And what's the first think a retailer of old and rare wines will say to someone who walks in with a bottle of 1784 Chateau d'Yquem under their arm and offering for sale? "Where'd you get it. It's not like they could have gotten this wine from many places that couldn't be checked up on.

Many of the other, "younger" vintages might be sold off.

I wonder what stolen wine tastes like? It can't be satisfying.

Reason #62 Why I live in Sonoma County

The FERMENTATION family took a jaunt about western Sonoma County yesterday; a nice Sunday afternoon drive into the hinterland of Sonoma County. Beyond the beauty of the vast pasture land, it was the evidence of this county's bounty that really put the smile on my face.

Sitting now in my kitchen is a 40 lb box of freshly picked gravenstien apples. these are not the pristine apples of supermarket lore. They have tiny flaws here and there, a nubbin, a tiny bruise, a not of sunburn. But, they are immensely flavorful and varietal in their flavor.

Next to the apples is a large bowl of blackberries and the pie we produced from their siblings that Mrs. Fermentation baked upon arriving back at the homestead. All throughout the cooler, fog glazed reaches of western Sonoma County are wild blackberry bushes that line the road and are now in the midst of showing off their fruit. There's nothing like ending your day trip with a nice hand-staining romp among the wild blackberries.

We stopped in three locations and jumped right in, harvesting an array of plump, juicy, intensely flavored blackberries. I still have the stains on my hands and the tee-shirt I wore is unlikely to recover. But who cares?

I'm sure there are numerous rural regions of America that provide the opportunity for a Sunday drive that produces a diverse haul of freshly picked goodies that taste of and reflect the destination. Yet in a days drive around West Sonoma and out to the coast I was happy to fill up on our own wines, apples, blackberries, wild salmon and just enough locally produced salt water taffy to feel a tad sick (not so sick that I couldn't suck down a piece of blackberry pie upon arriving home.

I'm not leaving here.

Wine Ratings: A Big Bunch of Readers

There is nothing more controversial in the world of wine, particularly among members of the trade and wine enthusiasts, than the 100 Point Rating System. Nothing else comes close to the controversy, discussion, vitriol, defense and words that the mention of this system for ranking wine can engender.

Since Gary Rivlin's well done New York Times piece on wine ratings, their impact and their use was published last Sunday I've had links to it forwarded to me by 13 different people. I get stories e-mailed to me on a regular basis. But this is a lot.

Clearly, the piece made an impact.

The most interesting discussion of the article I've seen occurs (and is probably still occurring) at the wine discussion forum at eRobert Parker. In fact, between the robust defense of the 100 point scale and a number of critiques of the article, Mr. Parker and Mr. Rivlin had the chance to address each on the matter of the motives of the NY Times, the fact checking of the NY Times and the amount of wine Robert Parker buys versus gets sent to him.

It was all a bit off topic. However, that discussion and the buzz the article caused in this industry suggests that that many people have a great deal invested one way or another in this ubiquitous ratings system.

There are a few things about the 100 Point Scale Rating System that can't be argued with:

1. 90 Points or above sells wine in a way 89 Points does not

2. The system works for most people because they intuitively understand the system

3. The points by themselves and without descriptions tell you nothing about the character of the wine

4. Point rankings are an essential tool for distributor salespeople without which they would have to re-learn the practice of selling wine

5. The near universal adoption of the 100 Point scale is in no way the fault of Robert Parker or the Wine Spectator. That responsibility must be laid at the steps of retailers and marketing types who have convinced consumers it is the best way to choose from among many wines.

One reason Rivlin's article has stirred up so much controversy and discussion is the venue in publication in which it ran: The New York Times. Say what you will about the New York Times but it remains the most influential newspaper in the world. With a Sunday Circulation of 1.6 Million readers, not to mention the Internet readers, it's easy to understand its influence. But you also have to consider WHO reads the NY Times. It's one of those publications that people in authority must read and be familiar with because other people in authority are reading it.

Consider also that as of today, this article was the 7th most emailed article from the NY times over the past 7 days.

This means that it is likely that those who read this article on the 100 Point wine rating scale was noticed by the staff of the White House, the executives at the largest wine companies in the world, the top management at Microsoft and GM, the vast majority of those in the business of drilling for oil and the intelligentsia of America.

That's why this was an important article. The matter of the 100 Point wine rating system just went global and went in front of people who make decisions.

Blogs, Wine Blogs and Communication

A few days ago I had the privilege of giving a short talk in front a number of wine industry types hosted by Inertia Beverage Group. The topic was "Blogs, Wine Blogs and Communication". A Texted Up version of that talk is reproduced below.

BLOGS, WINE BLOGS & COMMUNICATIONS

The ways by which we communicate to friends, family, colleagues and the market are expanding on a near daily basis. One particular form of communication that you need to be aware of is the Blog

For those of you unfamiliar with blogs, let me briefly explain. A blog is a type of website that publishes new information or articles on a regular basis, often on a daily bases. Each new entry goes to the top of the page with earlier entries descending down the page in reverse chronological order. Most blogs are created to speak to a very specific topic and most blogs are the simple act of a passionate individual who has an abiding interesting in a particular topic. However, more and more blogs are being written by real authorities in the field. For example, Inertia Beverage Group maintains a blog on selling wine direct. Eric Asimov of the NY Times maintains a blog on wine. A number of political celebrities maintain blogs. And some simple folk have become famous after publishing their blogs and gaining a real audience for their ideas.

History as Communicating More Easily and To More People
The number of blogs exploded after online software was created that made the development of a blog incredibly simple. If any one is interested in creating your first blog, you can be up and running in about 10 minutes. If the creation of the Internet killed the dominance of the pulp-based media, the blog is killing the dominance of the mainstream media. And all of it relates to lower barriers of entry.

Let me explain what I mean by that.

It’s entirely legitimate to understand history as the ongoing process of technology allowing information to be communicated more easily. For example

The Wall paintings of Lascaux (effective communication, but not very portable)

Stone Tablets (more portable, but not much more)

Scrolls (now we are getting somewhere: real portable, but they hard to reproduce)

Bound manuscripts (more information, but still hard to reproduce)

Gutenberg’s press (mass production of with relative easy of transport)

The Newspaper: (Standardized News Deliver, Portable, Ease of production)

Radio (Very portable and easy to produce. Also, it results in pop culture as millions of people hear the same thing)

Telephone (Quick, easy, one on one communications anywhere, anytime)

Television (The world becomes one as people in Europe can see and talk to people in America)

The Internet (images, audio, video, text, personal communications and marketing converge)

All of these technologies allowed information to be communicated more easily, by more people, and all resulted in a new media of some sort, a media that reached more people in more places.

But here’s the thing, in terms of being a part of these new media, the barriers to entry for all these communication technologies are pretty high for the average person. That average person can’t own a printing press, radio station, or television station. Even creating the standard web page demands a significant amount of technological expertise.

The Rise of Egalitarian Media
But then comes the blog. Combine the ease of creation of the blog with the power of search engines and Internet information aggregators and all of a sudden, everyone has a printing press, everyone has a television station and everyone has a radio station. Now, all of a sudden, everyone is on fairly equal footing when it comes to being part of the media.

Millions of people are taking advantage of the new age of egalitarian media. And for those who are really taking advantage of this new technology, they are finding that people are reading, responding and being influenced.

It’s a whole new ballgame and marketers need to be aware of who is playing the game and what the game means.

BLOGS & THE TREND TOWARD PERSONALIZATION
Blogs fit into an important cultural trend that you need to be aware of. A trend that is gathering speed at a pretty swift pace: The tendency of people to personalize and compartmentalize the media they consume. Technology today allows individuals to design their own, personally created, information stream based on their own very specific interests. For example:

Tivo: People are watching what they want to watch when they want to watch it.

i-Pods: The album is dead. People are creating their own playlists that reflect interests and moods

Internet Aggregators: people are having Internet services deliver very specific categories of information to them based on very specific interests. This information is coming in the form of text, video and audio. People are more and more getting up in the morning and reading exactly the kind of news they want without having to wade through a sports section or the business section or the fashion pages to get to what they want to know.

In other words, the source of media authority is fragmenting. People are no longer satisfied or relegated to getting their view of the world from CNN, the NY Times, the local paper and one or two talk radio stations.

BLOGS & THE WINE INDUSTRY
The Wine Blog is one of these new information sources that people are paying attention to on a daily basis and using to shape their worldview. And their numbers are growing as well as their influence.

A couple examples for you on how blogs are affecting the wine industry:
Some time ago I used my own wine blog to write about something called the wine pod, a home winemaking apparatus that is controlled via computer.  People read about this new piece of technology, forward links to my page to their friends and followed my link to the website of the Wine Pod. Within a few weeks this unknown company had scores of people on their waiting list to buy one. And it hadn’t been released yet.

A few days ago, Eric Asimov, the NY Times wine writer, wrote about a client of ours at Wark Communications. Eric wrote about our client not in the pages of the NY Times, but in his wine blog. The result was readers could simply click and go to our clients website, where large numbers of folk did go and signed up for the winery’s mailing list.

RadCru, the sell-one-wine-a-day website, is another example. Days after launching, RadCru was covered by a blog called “Daily Candy.” The mention drove thousands of people to the RadCru website where they bought a lot of wine. Daily Candy is a something that no one knew about two years ago. Today, it’s helping make Radcru a success.

Today there are about 350 wine blogs out there. About 10% of these have a significant audience that is loyal and appreciates the kind of candid, non-mainstream wine information they are getting from them. The number of wine blogs is going to continue to grow, and so will their influence.

My message to you today is simple: take account of the wine blog. Wines being reviewed and written about by wine bloggers are being bought and talked about by a lot of people.

How many people? Today, for example, my blog, Fermentation, attracts an audience of about unique11, 000 readers per month. This time next year it will be in the neighborhood of 18,000 readers per month. This time next year the most popular wine blogs will find 60,000 to 80,000 readers per month reading their recommendations and articles. 

And here’s the thing: the vast majority of these readers will very interested in what wineries and wine-related companies have to offer. That means you need start communicating with these wine bloggers in a professional and appropriate way the same way you have been communicating with the mainstream wine media.

It’s in your interest and it’s going to help you sell more wine.

Who Owns The Market for Wine?

Reading through a news article describing the two State and Federal court battles over direct shipping of wine to consumers in Arkansas, I cam across a statement that gave me pause:

U. S. District Judge Wright has ruled that Arkansas’ distributors and retailers do not have legal standing to intervene in the federal case, because they could not show how their property rights would be affected if outof-state wineries were allowed to ship directly to Arkansas consumers.

Distributors and retailers say they want to protect the threetier system that, as in some other states, requires producers to sell and ship only to wholesale distributors, and the distributors to sell and ship only to the retailers. Under the three-tier system, retailers may in turn sell only to consumers.

At its most base level what we have here is wine distributors arguing that THE MARKET for wine is THE PROPERTY OF THE DISTRIBUTORS.

In Arkansas, with the exception of a handful of state wineries that sell their wines directly to restaurants and retailers, only wines that wine distributors choose can actually be sold in that state. If a distributor chooses NOT to sell the wines from a CA or OR or TX winery those wines simply don't get into the stores and restaurants there.

The Arkansas judge rule that local distributors and retailers (who support this system of monopoly) don't have standing in the Federal case because they can't show how allowing out of state wineries to sell direct to consumers would affect the property rights of distributors. That judge is clearly wrong.

The fact is, the way the 3 tier system (producer to distributor to retailer) is set up, distributors clearly doe OWN the Arkansas market for fine wine.

This case is about Arkansas wineries being able to sell direct to Arkansas retailers and restaurants and out of state wineries being prohibited from doing the same. Distributors want to put a stop to Arkansas wineries do this so that fairness doesn't kick in and out-of-state wineries are allowed to bypass wholesalers and do the same.

Stereotyping New World Wines

Came across a fascinating article by Susanne Johnston in the Summit Daily News. Ms. Johnston is a retailer and seems to know here wine. At one point in the article on the subject of "terroir" she translates this french word into English as "Placeness". A brilliant description and one I've not heard before to describe those characteristics in a wine that are the result of the natural environment in which that grapes were grown.

Yet toward the end of the article we get this:

Can there be terroir qualities in New World wines like those coming from California or Australia? In my personal experience there are specific qualities that the earth and sky bring to specific places like Diamond Mountain, Stag’s Leap and Mount Veeder in Napa Valley that cannot be duplicated anywhere. However, it is a rare and wonderful thing when a winemaker from these regions allows the terroir to shine through, instead of making a wine for the masses.

As Mr. Jefford says, “There is nothing wrong with preferring the taste of fruit to that of terroir in wine...If you love fruit more than stones, rejoice in your good fortune. It will save you much money — and you barely need bother with French wine at all.” To discover, though, why people are prepared to pay more to taste stones, lose yourself in a fine bottle of Cru Chablis or a Meursault, it is an experience few forget."

The implication here is that "terroir" tastes like minerals. Or, that the terroir of a vineyard is translated by the mineral qualities found in a wine.

There is also found in the quote of Mr. Andrew Jeffords by Ms. Johnston the suggestion that New World wines, because they tend to be fruitier, are much less likely to exhibit a mineral character and less likely to exhibit terroir. While somewhat insulting, it's not an important point right now.

What struck me is this notion that terroir is properly exhibited in the mineral character found in wine. This seems likely a very narrow definition of the idea of terroir and too close to the idea that we too often here repeated that when a wine has an "earthy" taste that's the terroir talking.

Surely a vineyard's terroir might contribute more than mineral character to a wine. What about spice characteristics? What about the texture of a wine? Andrew Jeffords is a well known wine writer. Yet, I think what we have detected here is a real bias both against New World wines and in favor of Old World wines that has been displayed in his comments on terroir. This shouldn't be.

However, that said I think this kind of blanket statement is the fault of New World vintners as much as it is Jefford's bias. It is difficult for anyone who tastes wine on a regular basis to move past the fact that fruit flavors are a much more important element in New World wines. There is a huge bias against any hint of herb or vegetal elements among New World, and particularly Californian, winemakers. Great efforts in the vineyard and the winery are made to assure not a hint of herb or veggies show up in wines. Surely this has created a stereotype for New World wines.

Family Winemakers and the Tasting Machine

The Annual Family Winemakers of California San Francisco Tasting is set for Sunday August 20 (public tasting) and Monday August 21 (trade tasting). I'm going (for what must be the 10th year or so) but I have no idea how I'm going to navigate the more than 400 wineries that will be showing their wares.

I have this discussion with myself every year. "Should I just wander down the rows?"  "Should I seek out certain vintners?" I mean, we are talking 400 wineries.

I know one thing I want to do. I want track down Alder Yarrow from Vinography and just follow him around and see what he sees as he tastes through hundreds of wines and scores each one. The man is a machine and I'd love to see how the cogs turn. Alder is renown for delivering his impression of the tastings he goes to with list upon list of wines and scores for each.

Most of the wineries at this tasting are looking for exposure with the trade, the wholesalers, restaurants and retailers who often attend looking for something new and special. There is an interesting dance that occurs between those pouring and those tasting. You walk up to a table and the pourer tries to look you in the face while also looking at your badge to see who you are and who you are with. They want to know if you are important. If you are possibly a buyer, or a member of the media, you tend to get more attention. If you are unaccounted for, well, you get less attention. I've taken this spin when I've poured at the tasting. It's hard not to. You want to make the most of your time behind the table.

This year I'll be going as a member of the media. This will be the first time under that heading for me. It seems odd. Almost like cheating. While I suppose in a blogger sort of way I am a member of the media I consider myself more appropriately a member of the trade.

I recommend anyone who can attend this tasting attend. It is by far the most extensive tasting of California wines anywhere. It is also the place where you will find a number of very small, family-owned wineries that you may not find anywhere else.

Getting Wine Bloggers and Wine Marketers Together

Should wine bloggers and wine publicist/marketers get together...just to look each other in the eye and see what each other has to say and think?

I started thinking about this after getting an email inviting me TO THIS CONFAB of fashion bloggers and fashion publicists.

It's a pretty good idea and something that has been bandied about here and there among other wine bloggers. But it seems like now and again we see stories in the blogosphere and in the MSM about blogging and blogging ethics. With regard to wine this usually comes up when discussing whether or not a blogger can objectively review a wine that was sent to them by a publicist or winery.

I, obviously, have no doubt that a wine blogger can remain objective and still receive samples from wineries. The mainstream wine media has been operating this way for decades with no appreciable degrading of their objectivity.

Still, the idea of getting together wine bloggers and wine marketers is probably more appealing to the wine marketers. My sense is that they don't quite understand blogging, let alone wine bloggers. And they aren't sure what to make of the whole "blogging explosion".

Already there are wine blogs that have a greater reach and larger audience than many well respected wine newsletters and soon than they think a few wine bloggers will have a greater readership than some mainstream wine magazines. What's a marketer to make of this?

I'm thinking a publication like Wine Business Monthly or an event like the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium would be perfect hosts or venues for a Wine Blogging Event. In the case of the above noted Fashion Blogging event it is a PR company that is organizing the bloggers and marketers. It makes this wine publicist think long and hard about the idea.

Which Wine Blogs Should I List?

It's time to re-evaluate my blogroll of wine blogs. It has been a while.

And...I'd like some help.

Here's what I want to know:

Is there a Wine Blog not on my blogroll over there on the right hand side that NEEDS to be there? Is there a wine blog you think NEEDS TO BE READ? Let me know what wine blog that is by posting a comment. I'll evaluate it and get it up.

I don't care if you own the blog you are recommending, a blog writing by a friend of yours, or just a blog you like and read and want others to know about. Just send me your recommendations on the best wine blogs out there that are not currently listed on my blogroll.

Innocence and Wine

Magic and Mystery. Nothing is a greater enemy to magic and mystery than Technology. It's no coincidence that authority of the churches has declined in fairly direct proportion to the development of new technology that delivered new insight into the natural world.

Technology is the killer of innocence.

I can not escape this conclusion as I read that scientists in Australia are working on the creation of a "Cybernose", a technology using insights from the natural world that will allow detailed measurements of aroma and flavor:

"By 2013, we aim to have, in wineries around Australia, a cybernose that will enable the wine industry to objectively measure aroma and flavour - a more reliable measure than chewing some grapes," Dr Trowell said.

"This will enable winemakers to pick grapes at the time of optimum ripeness and even to tailor the style of wine precisely and so improve its value. This has the potential to contribute $750 million annually to the industry."

Doesn't sound very mysterious does it. Not very sexy either. There's no question that if this technology is deployed it will give winemakers more control over the winemaking and grapegrowing process. And on many levels that's good. But it does strike me as a tad sterile. In fact, it strikes in the same way that Enologix strikes me: I get the utility, but the emperor has a lot fewer clothes on..

The Challenge of Changing a Wine's Name

Last week Eric Asimov of the New York Times visited Bucklin's Old Hill Ranch here in Glen Ellen. Eric drove up the gravel road in a black Dodge Magnum rental that looked ominously like a hearse. I thought he might be there to bury us.

It was one of those beautiful days in Glen Ellen where the afternoon temperature is about 92 there's a slight breeze coming up the valley from the North and it was pretty quiet all around. We walked through the vineyard. Eric asked question and will did his impression of the Amazing Kreskin, point to vines surrounding him and saying, "that one's zin, that one's grenache, that one's syrah, that one's Alicante Bouschet, that one's petite syrah..." etc, etc.

They look the same to me.

The best part of the visit actually came after we took ourselves out of the sun, parked ourselves under some old eucalyptus trees, tasted some wines and nibbled on some lovely cheeses and talked.

When Eric left, will and I remained to finish the cheese. At first the discussion went to the towering Eucalyptus trees. Will is considering taking them down. These trees are affectionately known as "widdowmakers" for their tendencies to lose their very heavy branches with no prior notice. I think the comfort of the shade got to him. He decided to think on it more

After that decision was taken, conversation turned to the topic of Bucklin's Old Hill Ranch vineyard. It's  remarkably unique piece of make that makes remarkably unique wines. I've been thinking about this vineyard and the wine it makes. What I've been thinking is this:

Why shouldn't Will take the word "ZINFANDEL" off the label of his wine and simply call it,
"Bucklin Old Hill Ranch"?

This idea simply lends credibility to the idea that the wine behind the label is more indicative of the vineyard than the 75% of the vines in the vineyard that are Zinfandel. As Eric pointed out in his story, the very idea of doing this contradicts the realities of selling wine in a varietal based market. Will and I talked about whether this reality would actually inhibit the sales of the wine.

We both agreed it would. But, I think it would only...initially. It's not like there is a lot of Bucklin Old Hill Ranch to sell. The vineyard dates to the 1850s and the vines yield at most a ton and a half per acre. With a little effort and communication I think we could carry out the education necessary to make the wine a "vineyard's reflection" rather than a grape's reflection as it is now with "zinfandel on the front of the label.

The most difficult part of this plan would be getting the wholesalers on board. They'd have to deliver this message to retailers and restauratuers and convince them to put the wine in the "Zin" or the "proprietary red" section of the store or on the restaurant list. But of course, there are other ways to make the wholesaler's portion of this effort much, much less involved. But that's another story.

Intuitively, I am in love with the idea of taking the varietal name of this wine off the label. In and of itself its a terribly elegant way to convey the meaning of the wine. Yet, will and I both agreed that now was not the right time to do this. Varietal labeling is so ingrained in the minds of the consumer and the trade the disruption to current marketing efforts would be enormous.

But, it's not out of the question....later....I hope.

The Blogosphere on Whining Wine Wholesalers

There are some interesting takes in the Blogosphere over today's announcement from the Wine & Spirit Wholesalers of America that a survey shows the world is about to end because 2% of those answering said survey announced they had bought wine online (By the way, the 2% is within the margin of error).

Over at TECH DIRT  they conclude that rather than proving there is a problem with minors buying wine online the survey in fact demonstrates that, "No, this is actually new, hard evidence that the problem you've been screaming about isn't a problem at all."

At REASON ONLINE's BLOG a post entitled "Fine Whine and Wholesale Lies" observes that "Concerned yet? Not even the Office of National Drug Control Policy can muster up a proper alarmist statement."

Both these sites have very interesting comments section.

Anastasia at Ypulse Blog, a site dedicated to marketing to the Y Generation, delivers a broadside against the White house Office of Drug Control Policy for their, as she correctly calls it, "inane" reaction to the story in which they warn parents that, "...the drug dealer who used to lurk in the seedy side of town is now just an e-mail or a URL away from your home."

The good guy over at the GOOD GRAPE BLOG offers an the cartoonists response to the varied coverage of today's survey story.

The learned folk over at SHIP COMPLIANT BLOG have the whole story and they had it yesterday. They've got the link to the Free the Grapes response as well as the entire text of Juanita Duggan's letter to trade Associations.

Terrorism & Wine

It's easy to sit in our cozy wine country enclave, watch the news of potential terror attacks emanating out of Great Britain and think, well, we are safe in our little world.

However, today's events could significantly impact the wine industry here in Northern California as well as across the nation.

The Federal government has issued new guidelines for passengers that now make it impossible to carry liquid on to a airplane. There is no word on how long this restriction will last. This doesn't bode well for winery tasting rooms where many who purchase six or twelve bottles of wine like to carry on their booty rather than check the wine where it will be exposed to a variety of temperatures and not a little jostling.

I spoke with two wineries today and both were very concerned about the impact of the new regulations. Jeff Mayo of Mayo Family Winery who operates five tasting rooms in Sonoma County (and is a client of Wark Communications) said:

"This is certainly going to hurt my business and other wineries. There are lots of people who just don't want to pay for shipping from the tasting room and prefer to take the wine on the plane with them and put it in the compartment above them. A lot of those people are going to not buy the wine, rather than pay th shipping. It's a perfect example of how events across the world can hurt small businesses on the other side of the world."

After 9/11 the wine industry, like others related to travel, took a major hit. Tourism and travel was down, people were not buying as much and many tasting rooms saw their sales plummet for a time. That's not going to happen due to the uncovering of a terror plot in the UK.

However, I think we'll see tasting rooms lowering their shipping costs to persuade more visitors to buy and ship the wine, rather than not buy at all.

Juanita Duggan's and the Wine Wholesalers' "Hail Mary" Pass

FERMENTATION has obtained a copy of an e-mail that the Wine & Spirit Wholesalers Association's (WSWA) president Juanita Duggan sent to a number of trade associations yesterday, a day before the release of a "survey" on on-line alcohol sales. The e-mail strikes this writer as a "stick this in your bottle" kind of parting communication that comes on the eve of Duggan's departure from the world of wine.
 

Duggan is doing her best in the waning hours she has at WSWA (she's already resigned to take another position) to right the wrong that has occurred under her tenure. In the time she has been at the helm of the WSWA, we have seen a Supreme Court decision that essentially slapped down the wholesalers retrograde and anti-consumer stand on direct shipping of wine, a number of new states open their borders to the direct shipment of wine to consumers, and a general dismissal in the media of the wine wholesalers faux concern for minors ad the degree to which they are accessing alcohol on line.

It appears that Duggan is doing whatever she can to salvage what has been a major b-tch slapping of the wholesalers during her time as the head of that group's main trade association.

In her e-mail to various trade associations Duggan writes:

"I wanted to give you a heads up on some very important research that we are releasing tomorrow...

"WSWA is releasing a research survey conducted by TRU (Teenage Research Unlimited) confirming that millions of teenagers have ordered alcohol online, or have a friend who has ordered online."

Of course what the survey does not include is the most important piece of data if you are really interested in the alcohol purchasing habits of teens: how they get their alcohol. No question along the lines of "where do you most often get alcohol?" is included in the survey.

The California Wine Institute noticed this little omission, as I did, and had this to say in a statement they released today:

"Wine Institute questions whether this WSWA survey is motivated by concern over underage access or is another misguided attempt to protect their distribution stronghold following a major defeat in the Supreme Court on May 16, 2005.   Any legitimate survey of the issue would also include a review of underage purchases at retail establishments and consider the important role that parents must play in the home where alcohol is most easily procured. Wine Institute believes WSWA should channel its resources into such efforts instead of financing surveys and slick publicity campaigns."

The press release issued by WSWA led with this sentence:

"Millions of minors either buy alcohol online with ease or know an underage friend who does, according to a survey released today by the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America."

I'm not sure what the real world significance is of "know(ing) an underage friend" who has bought alcohol on line. However, I do know what the significance is of it being in the first sentence of the WSWA press release. They felt they needed to bump up the apparent number of teens buying on line because the actual figures in the survey, just over 500,000, doesn't exactly an epidemic make. If you read quickly through the press release you get the impression it really is "millions" buying on line. But their own survey does not suggest this."

However, the press release headline the WSWA used to sell this "survey" is extraordinarily deceptive and actually contradicts what their survey supposedly uncovers. The headline to the press release reads:

Millions of Kids Buy Internet Alcohol, Landmark Survey Reveals

"Millions" implies at least 2 million. Yet their survey uncovered at most 550,000 minors buying alcohol over the Internet. The really interesting question is why WSWA thought they needed to mislead in the headline. The reason surely is that the results of the survey are underwelming. Consider the headline on the main story being published on the Internet